Sir Gerald Kaufman is the new Father of the House

13 May 2015

Father of the House is the title given to the MP with the longest continuous service who is not a Minister. Sir Gerald Kaufman, MP for Manchester Gorton, was first elected at the June 1970 General Election.

Father of the House

The main duty of the Father of the House is to preside over the election of a new Speaker.

When two or more MPs were elected at the same time, seniority is determined by the order in which they swore the oath. The next longest serving Members of the Commons are Conservative MP Kenneth Clarke and Labour MPs Michael Meacher and Dennis Skinner who were all also first elected in 1970.